the sky was a surprise today
each time I considered it
(1) an army of puffballs marching
across a river, (2) cotton ringlets
sprung open in the currents of a lagoon,
(3) the bruised eye socket of a storm
swirling its empty threats
the sun winking still behind the hill
each of my best dogs let loose,
chasing through knots of sunflowers
which are also Mrs. Moores
a field of her bending back and forth
with the perfectly yellow breeze
& I am so ready for 3rd grade
even for the 3rd time, even
though I’m no more a girl or boy
than my first two tries, knees folded
into the crawlspace under the stairs
jumping at every voice that wasn’t hers
just look, her voices shimmer,
pulling my body into the light,
just look
Nation Makes is a trans poet and neuroscientist living in Montréal / Tiohtià:ke. Their work examines how the brain and body conspire to create experience. Their poetry appears in guerrilla zines found in queer bars, experimental booksellers, postal slots, and now also in Plenitude.
